that's my upper handguard. one of the early thoughts was a rail on top of the gas tube would allow me an easy way to get some insulation between my hand and the hot gas tube. I was leaning toward a vented heat shield for a while...
thanks.

sight height was the focus for these. i wanted them as low as possible for the cheek weld. these sit 0.320" above the sight plane. that will provide an absolute cowitness when I install a T1 micro on there.

so to answer your question:
AKs have never been a proper cheek weld platform for me. the front half of my cheek sits on the receiver/top cover and this shotgun is no different.
I plan to address that on this shotgun with a cheekpad and a buttpad.

that said, as it sits now, is very usable with no neck strain. i just want the sights to line up for me without thinking about them when i shoulder the weapon.

im waiting for my buddy to get his done so I can try his Tormix stock and see if its more comfortable for me than a standard stock. Itd have to be real comfy for me to cut my tang.